Language Arts

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<Phonics >  <Spelling> <Vocabulary>

<Reading> <Writing> <Grammar>

 This is probably the most extensive group of subjects we have with just as many different levels to teach. It can be a real challenge at times. I have gone through many different techniques of teaching in this category. This is what we are doing now:

<Phonics> 

 Letter matching game. The alpha strips are from Happy Phonics, her letter cards are the letter in her  name that I made.

About the second year we were homeschooling I stumbled upon Love to Learn and her wonderful program Happy Phonics. This is a great game filled program that even my students that are finished with the program love to go back and play the games again! It definitely is a good starting point for learning to read however, I felt for some of my kiddos that we needed more so I have supplemented and added to it with a variety of things, but never doing away with the helpful supplements in the Happy Phonics program.

<Spelling>  

I use to stress badly over the subject of spelling. And then I picked up A Charlotte Mason Companion by Karen Andreola in my library. Chapter Twenty-Two is titled "The Servant Spelling" and the very first sentence is : "Spelling is  slowly servant." As I read that very first sentence all of my stored up anxiety about this particular subject fell from my shoulders and I inhaled a refreshing breathe as I continued to read and confirm everything I already knew. Memorizing lists upon lists of words is not the way to become a good speller. Reading and writing forming an intimate relationship with words is however the correct way to develop the spelling skills that are desired. When a child is working on a letter to Grandma, they want it to look it's best and therefore will accept the gentle correction of a loving teacher. The words will be remembered because they were important to the writer.
And so it is through natural settings that we practice spelling in our home for the beginner speller.
For my middle spellers I do have a program that we like to pick up and use to both build vocabulary and practice words that may not be in their day to day writings. We have come to really enjoy the program Sequential Spelling. Each list builds upon the other, there is a new one everyday. This is not a memorize the list and test on friday type of program. It shows the building blocks of spelling principles, which resonates well with my dyslexic son. We like it even better now that the program comes with a cd-rom and the students can hear, then spell, then see the word. Mom puts little to no effort into the spelling lessons. If they come across words that stump them, they are to practice them on the website Spelling City.

<Vocabulary> 
"Older children who are good readers have become good readers not by vocabulary worksheets but by wide reading and much reading. A rule to remember is" Wiede reading = Wide vocabulary"-Karen Andreola
Once again great insight from my favorite homeschooling book. My 5 year old can talk circles around me. She issn't reading herself yet, but has grown in an environment of books and listening to her older sister who is very well read and uses a vast vocabulary in her day to day communications. No work books, programs or notecards involved. Just old fashioned reading.

<Reading>
"Put the little minds' of children out of your thoughts. Children have just as big minds as we have." 
-Charlotte Mason

It's always heart warming to see an older sibling reading to a younger.

There really is WAY too much I could say about this! But to simply sum it up...WE READ EVERYTHING ALL OF THE TIME. Books are well loved in our house. I have read aloud to my kiddos from the very start...even before homeschooling.  We love living books and don't do as well with text-books. I have also always been ill impressed with the various beginning readers. The stories are drab and the words lack luster. The new reader works very hard to sound out those words and they need to be rewarded with a word that his mind can digest, not throw out the moment it moves on to the next. Not to mention the pride they feel when they are able to read a word with so many letters! I recently picked up a little set that another mom was selling that I didn't really know much about but has proven to be promising-there wasn't much of a chance that we wouldn't like it since it is based off of CM techniques. It is produce by Simply Charlotte Mason and entitled: Delightful Reading. It has indeed been delightful thus far. My 7 year old is enjoying learning the text of a poem with interesting words. I can see the light getting brighter within her supporting her already growing love of books.

The most important books that we read everyday is of course our scriptures. I find it funny that my beginning readers tend to read "big" words better than the smaller ones because we have encouraged our kiddos to read from the scriptures the moment they can sound out words! Seriously they can read: "atonement" but not "were". Although we have many books on our shelves, we are lovers of the library and I am seriously considering in buying a wagon just for library trips!

<Writing>

Writing takes place wherever the writer is most inspired!

We usually notebook about our current read-aloud and other topics of interest that we study. I expect their notebooking pages to be neat and done to the best of their abilities. I try not to correct too much spelling because I want them to have the freedom to write as much as they possibly can without being restricted by what they can spell. My younger crowed will narrate to me and I can help them along with their writings.

Journaling: From time to time we keep formal journals, but mostly they have just mostly written journal entries as inspired to do so. It's fun to write about an exciting life event like a vacation taken or to explain a discovery glued into a nature journal.

As my kids get older they do participate in widening their skills as writer with writing prompts from different subjects in their other learning. I have a few books and resources on our shelves to help us along when needed.

A picture to draw or color is always a welcome addition to  a writing assignment! Especially for the younger learners who  lack the ability to write all that they would if they only knew all of the words. A picture gives them a louder voice and a great jumping point for narration!

<Grammar>

"I'll be honest, we are really lacking in this area." -----This is what used to start off this section and I am happy to say I no longer feel this way. As I have adopted more and more of the CM style of teaching my confidence in this area has grown substantially. This year I purchased English for the Thoughtful Child (both levels) and it is turning out to be a wonderful gem. I also purchased Simply Grammar another book written by Karen Andreola. The first books mentioned are being used as our daily lesson book and the other is for when there is a specific topic that needs touched on.

One last inspired word from my favorite homeschool author:
"Be faithful in the little by little day-by-day approach of reading from great books." -K.A.